Intensified
by Mockingjay272
Summary: Collaboration with Anabelle Blake. Takes place right after Destined. Thanatos finally knows the truth about Neferet, but the Tsi Sgili's not going down without a fight. Zoey and her gang need to be prepared if they are to survive what's coming next... Zoey/Stark, Stevie Rae/Rephaim.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: It saddens us to say that we do not own these characters….. Yet…. ;) (Mock says she wishes she owned the characters… Especially Rephaim ;D)**_

**A/N: Hi y'alls! Stevie Rae here! OK, so that's a lie. It's actually Mock. ANYWAY, we're super excited to be writing this story, even if it is one of the hardest things either of us have written. First things first… Jenn, I know you for one are probably reading this right now. You, and anyone else who hasn't finished Destined, you should just stop reading now. This takes place right after Destined, so if you haven't read that, this is going to confuse the crap out of you, not to mention the spoilers. But if you're all caught up, read on, and we hope you enjoy! Don't forget to review!**

_**Kitty's A/N: We really hope you enjoy this story. I know I'll have fun writing it with my best buddy Mock! So without further stalling here is you chapter!**_

**~Mock, Kitty**

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_**Zoey**_

"Look!" Stevie Rae cried, pointing above the circle.

I looked up and there, hovering, was our Goddess. She was dressed in robes the color of night and wore a headdress decorated with stars. Her smile took in us all, and with the fragrance of flowers, her words drifted through the bus.

_Hold to the memory of the healing that happened here this night._

_You will need that strength and peace for the upcoming fight._

She addressed Kalona directly with a soft smile.

_When we were in the Otherworld you asked me for forgiveness, _she said to him. _I gave you an answer then. Do you remember what I said?_

Kalona nodded. "Yes. You said I may ask it of you if I am ever worthy of your forgiveness," he answered.

Nyx smiled kindly at him.

_You may ask me again if you wish._

"Please forgive me my Goddess," he said without hesitation. By now everyone on the bus was silent and watched the exchange, mostly with apprehension. But in some faces, I saw hope.

_You are worthy of the gift now. You have moved from your path of Darkness to the path of Light. Always remember your oath to my daughter Thanatos._

Everyone was still. Not one person moved a single muscle while we all processed this. "Thank you so much my Goddess!" Kalona finally exclaimed.

_There will be a punishment for your past behaviors, _Nyx warned him. Kalona nodded.

"I accept the consequences," he said firmly.

_Step off of the bus, _the Goddess ordered as she appeared on the ground right in front of the bus. Kalona was quick to step off of the bus and go to stand before her. She looked at him with a blank expression.

_You shall lose your wings as punishment for your past actions, and you no longer can communicate with your sons. They will not know you as their father, except for Rephaim because he has chosen the path of Light as have you._

As she finished speaking, his wings seemed to retreat back into his body and he went rigid but didn't scream. I for one was completely grossed out by what was happening to him, and as I glanced around the bus I could tell the others were as well. Stark leaned in and whispered, "Is it just me or did that gross out anyone else?"

"It wasn't just you. I think everyone got grossed out," I whispered back. "I mean, that just looked nasty."

"Thank you Goddess," Kalona said when it was done with. He bowed respectfully to her with his hand fisted over his heart. Nyx smiled at him, then turned her face to the rest of us.

_Then I wish you all, my children, to blessed be, _she said before fading away.

Kalona got back onto the bus and Shaunee, Rephaim, and Stevie Rae rushed up to him. Those were the faces that had held the expressions of hope when Nyx was talking to Kalona. They were the ones that were happy. I tried to tell myself that I was happy for Kalona as well, happy that he was on our side now, and pledged to Thanatos.

But if I was being honest, all I could think was _ah, hell._

_**Stevie Rae**_

Without thinking, Stevie Rae joined Rephaim and Shaunee to run up to Kalona when he got back on the bus. He seemed to be in a daze, his facial expression not quite in the moment as they approached him.

"Father," Rephaim began, sounding awestruck. Stevie Rae squeezed the hand she was holding to give him strength; she knew this was something he'd been waiting for. Kalona shook his head a little, as if clearing his mind. Then he got the most radiant smile on his face.

"At last I have been reconciled with Nyx," he said. "At last I have done something right and stepped back to her path of Light."

Thanatos swept up to him to touch his arm. "Indeed my Sword Master," she said. "Our Goddess has forgiven you for what you have done in your past and has given you a bright future. And, I assume, you will join our battle against the false High Priestess Neferet and her Consort, Darkness?" Kalona nodded.

"There is nothing I desire more than the downfall of the Tsi Sgili," he growled.

"Then let us get back to our House of Night. I sense we have a hard battle to complete there," Thanatos said, and then she took the same spot she had on the ride here, holding on to the rail.

Kalona turned his attention to Rephaim. Finally, Stevie Rae could see that Kalona really did love Rephaim. Pride for him swelled in her chest. Rephaim had been right all along. His daddy really did have the capability to love.

Kalona awkwardly put his hand on Rephaim's shoulder. "Thank you for helping me realize the path of Light again, my son. If you had not chosen Nyx's path first, I doubt I ever would have."

"Stevie Rae is the real person to thank," Rephaim said. "If she had not saved me, I too would never have known Nyx."

Kalona turned his gaze to her, such an intense stare that it made her uncomfortable. Suddenly, it reminded her of the way Rephaim used to stare at her when she would babble while healing him. Glancing at Rephaim, Stevie Rae also noticed how much he looked like his daddy. Their mouths, eye shape, and face structure were all the same.

"Thank you Red- I mean, Stevie Rae," Kalona said, snapping her face back towards him. "Thank you for saving my son and showing him the path of the Goddess."

"I-It wasn't a problem," Stevie Rae said, stammering. "Your son was worth saving." Rephaim smiled at her, taking her other hand. His touch made her relax. She nodded at Kalona, who gave a short nod in return, and then returned back to her seat with Rephaim.

As soon as they sat down, Stevie Rae threw her arms around his neck and started sobbing into his shoulder. He held her uncertainly.

"Stevie Rae, my love, what could possibly be the problem?" he asked, rubbing small circles in her back.

"I-I thought you were gonna die!" she cried. "Death had marked you, and if your daddy hadn't come you would've been taken from me! Oh, Goddess, don't you ever do that to me again!" Her voice broke and she put her head back into his shoulder, sobbing her heart out. Rephaim simply held her while she cried, waiting for her to calm down a bit before actually talking.

"Stevie Rae, I promise you I won't leave you," he said, smiling slightly. "Unless I die protecting you, I will stay by your side and love you, always." He kissed her softly, and wiped the tears from Stevie Rae's face. "Come, you're going to need your strength when we get back to the House of Night," he said. Stevie Rae nodded.

"You'll have my back, right?" she asked him.

"Always," he responded, kissing her again. And for the rest of the ride, Stevie Rae was content to lean into him, trying not to think of the shit storm that was heading their way…

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**A/N: HEHEHEHEHEHE! Mock is happy with this! So very happy… Fluff just makes my day. Hope y'all liked this, and we'll have more out soon! And I can promise that Stevie Rae is totally right about the shit storm that's coming up. And then a huge thanks to Kitty for doing such an awesome job with the beginning of this and making my life that much easier (she's doing Zoey's POV throughout the story, I'm doing Stevie Rae's, just so y'all know) There's also going to be much more FLUFF than that little bit there, because fluff just makes me so happy… Anyway, review people, review!**

_**Kitty's A/N: Hahaha yes REVIEWs and fluff make us very happy! And happiness makes us write faster so we'll be sure to keep the fluff going and you be sure to keep the REVIEWs coming! Hope you enjoyed it! If so REVIEW if not, tell us what we could do to make it better with a REVIEW. And gosh Mock you did an awesome job with the chapter. I was all giddy and "AWWWW" When I read it :)**_

**~Mock, Kitty**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi again y'all! Mock here. I just want to say this is one of the funnest things I have written in a LOOOOOOOOOONG time. This is so full of angst and fluff it's ridiculous. Yes, both of those at the same time. Be in awe of my awesome skills. (I apologize for my weird mood.)**

_**Woo hooo! Can't wait to see what you wrote girly! I bet it's gonna be awesome!**_

**~Mock, Anabelle**

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_**Stevie Rae**_

When the bus got back to the House of Night, Neferet was waiting for them. She was wearing an expression of disdain, as always. Darius slowly let the bus come to a halt, but Thanatos' powerful voice stopped everyone from getting off.

"Before we face her, call upon your elements to shield your minds," she said. "Neferet is never to be underestimated and I do not expect her to come quietly. She will most likely try to deny that she is involved in Darkness. But stick to the truth, young fledglings and vampyres, and we shall prevail." And with that, Death departed the bus.

Zoey and Stark followed, looking determined. Stevie Rae took a deep breath and grabbed Rephaim's hand before they got up. "Time to cowboy up," she muttered to him, and he squeezed her hand reassuringly. Together, with Kalona following them, they joined their friends.

It looked like one of the old cowboy movies Stevie Rae used to watch, with each side lining up against each other, preparing for the fight. But instead of guns, Neferet's weapons were Darkness and Stevie Rae's group had the elements. _And Nyx's blessing, _she thought. That had to count for something.

She focused her attention on Neferet, who was staring at Kalona with narrowed eyes. "I thought I had banished you from my side. Why must I keep reminding you of this?" she asked him.

Stevie Rae expected Kalona to explode in anger. Instead, he replied in a very calm voice. "My place is with Thanatos, for she has accepted my Oath to be her Warrior and Sword Master for her House of Night."

"I was not aware that Thanatos had a House of Night," Neferet responded, but Stevie Rae thought she sounded slightly unnerved. "And if you are referring to the Tulsa House of Night, I am the High Priestess here, and my Sword Master is Dragon Lankford."

"Dragon Lankford has been killed," Thanatos said at the exact moment Darius carried Dragon's shrouded body from the bus. "He was killed while protecting Rephaim, who was attacked by your supposed gift from Nyx, the creature Aurox. Aurox killed Dragon, and then fled."

At these words, Stevie Rae definitely saw Neferet's innocent façade falter. Then she slapped her mask back on and swept to Dragon's side. She lifted the shroud so that Dragon's face could be seen, then mumbled something that was probably meant to be mistaken for a prayer. _She's such a fake!_ Stevie Rae thought.

"This indeed, is a dark day," said Neferet. "But Thanatos, there is still the matter of Kalona. He is responsible for killing Heath Luck, yet he is now your Warrior? And why do you proclaim this House of Night to be yours?"

"Because you are no longer a High Priestess of Nyx!" Thanatos said. Her voice was magnified and her hair whipped around her as air came to her. "In the reveal ritual that we just witnessed, the truth was illuminated. You killed Linda Heffer and you have made a Consort out of the White Bull. This will not be tolerated. Even now, I and a number of this group can see that you are surrounded by Darkness. The fledglings at this House of Night will be tainted by your lies no longer. The High Council will be notified of your actions and you will be disgraced."

At this, Neferet finally broke. "You will not take my power from me!" she shrieked. She slashed her palm and in a loud voice cried, "I call upon the powers of Darkness! Destroy one of their number so that they will be weakened!" One of the tendrils of Darkness lashed its way up her palm and drank from her blood, and Neferet moaned.

"Call your elements!" Zoey yelled. _Earth, come to me,_ Stevie Rae thought, and she felt the familiar element surround her. She prepared to throw the might of earth at Neferet when the Tsi Sgili pointed at Rephaim.

The Darkness that surrounded her shot like a bullet towards Rephaim. Stevie Rae couldn't think rationally. She abandoned her element and jumped in front of the Darkness.

She gave a small "Oh!" of surprise as it hit her directly in the stomach, and she dropped, seeing nothing but black.

_**Rephaim**_

He didn't see Stevie Rae until it was too late. He had been preparing himself against Neferet, determined to help end her. But when the Darkness had shot from her, everything had happened so fast he didn't have time to comprehend. His mind had almost shut down. But Stevie Rae's voice, saying that shocked little "Oh!" had jarred him back.

He ran forward just fast enough to catch her before she hit the ground. Her stomach had a large gash and was bleeding profusely. He heard Neferet's laughter, heard Zoey call upon spirit to hurtle the element at the Tsi Sgili, but none of that mattered. All that mattered was that he had failed Stevie Rae. He had allowed her to be hurt.

He took off his shirt and held it to the wound, hoping to soak up as much of the blood as possible, though he knew it was hard to heal from Darkness. He would not have healed if Stevie Rae had not called upon the earth to fill him with its power.

"Zoey!" he yelled. In an instant she was at his side, staring intently at Stevie Rae. "We must ask the earth to heal her. It's the only reason I healed when Darkness inflicted wounds uopn me. Please, we must save her!" He heard the desperation in his voice, but it seemed to rouse Zoey. She grabbed his hand, and he looked at her uncertainly.

"You're gonna have to ask the earth to heal her," she said. "The other elements will help, but earth's gonna be the main point. Since Stevie Rae's out and we're doing this for her, you have to fill in. You're her Consort, the closest one to Stevie Rae." Rephaim nodded as Damien, Shaunee, and Erin came over. Anything to help his Stevie Rae.

Zoey began. "Earth, please come to your Stevie Rae and heal her from the wound Darkness has given her. Please." Rephaim knew what he had to do. He put his hand on Stevie Rae's wound as he felt the power of earth enter her. It intensified as the other elements offered their support.

"Strengthen the healing, air," said Damien.

"Burn away her pain, fire," said Shaunee.

"Cleanse her, water," said Erin.

"Give her life, spirit," Zoey concluded.

With each element, Rephaim felt the earth's power being strengthened. It seeped into Stevie Rae; the earth wanted to heal her. When Zoey thanked the elements, Stevie Rae gave a hesitant cough. Her wound had stopped bleeding and already it was starting to close. Rephaim ignored the rest of the world and tenderly held Stevie Rae's head in his lap. Her eyes fluttered open weakly.

"Re-Rephaim?" she gasped, her voice no stronger than a whisper. "You're alright?"

"Yes, my love, but you are not," Rephaim said, bringing more of her body closer to him, cradling her. "I can't believe I let you get hurt," he muttered, more to himself than her.

"Hey, do-don't beat yourself up over that. I wasn't gonna let you g-get hurt again," Stevie Rae said, coughs fracturing her sentence. Rephaim just shook his head and held her closer.

"She must drink blood," Thanatos said, swooping over. "I have confirmed that Neferet has left the House of Night, she will not be bothering us until she is sure she has a plan that will prevail. Right now we can focus on Stevie Rae. And Stevie Rae must drink blood."

Without hesitation, Rephaim took Stevie Rae's hand and raised it to his neck. He let her fingernail slash the skin, and then brought his neck down to her lips. It took a moment, but her mouth latched on to the cut and she began drinking greedily. The pleasure was just as great as the first time Rephaim had allowed Stevie Rae to drink from him. She moaned softly against his neck and he threw his head back, trying to contain the sounds of pleasure he wanted so badly to let out.

Stevie Rae's small hand slowly began to travel down his chest, and traced the waistline of his pants. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, she let her hand fall a bit farther down…

"Oh for shit's sake! Will you two _get a room_ already?" Aphrodite's voice caused Stevie Rae to immediately pull her hand off and reluctantly unclamp her mouth from Rephaim's neck. She was blushing bright crimson, but still looked weak. Rephaim glanced down at her, asking his question with his eyes.

"It's a rude way of saying that we obviously want to make love and she doesn't want to see it," Stevie Rae murmured, resting her head on Rephaim's chest. He twisted one of her blonde curls around his fingers slowly, letting Stevie Rae rest. "I love you," he whispered to her. "And I will never forgive myself for letting that happen to you." At those words, Stevie Rae looked up at Rephaim.

"There was no dang way I was gonna let ya get hurt. For cryin' out loud, you nearly died earlier today. As long as you're OK, so am I." She coughed and wiped some excess blood from the corner of her mouth.

"We must to get you back into the tunnels," Rephaim said. "No. You need to be with your element," he said when Stevie Rae began to protest. She nodded meekly and grabbed Rephaim's shoulder, trying to pull herself from the ground. She barely got her torso upright before she gave a gasp of pain and collapsed.

Rephaim picked her up and carried her in his arms easily. He then turned his attention to the rest of the group.

"I'll get the bus ready. I think that it is in our best interest to rest for the remainder of the night," Darius said. He turned to Thanatos. "Priestess, what do you wish to do? Will you accompany us back to the depot?"

Thanatos shook her head. "I need to inform the fledglings about the, ah, staffing changes. I believe that Stevie Rae is in more than capable hands," she said nodding at Rephaim. She then touched his father's arm. "And I wish for my Warrior to accompany me. We will visit the depot later tonight, if that is alright with you," she asked Kalona. He nodded.

As Thanatos and Kalona made their way to the school, Zoey led the way to the bus. However, she stopped before getting on. She grabbed Aphrodite's arm to prevent her from boarding as well. "Let Rephaim go. Stevie Rae needs to get set down ASAP." Rephaim nodded his thanks to Zoey, then hurried to the back of the bus, where he laid himself down on the enlarged seat, then placed Stevie Rae on his chest. She was barely conscience.

"Sleep, my love," Rephaim whispered. Stevie Rae nodded slightly, then closed her eyes. Rephaim traced her lips lightly with his thumb, hating himself for allowing his High Priestess to be so gravely hurt…

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**A/N: Yeah… You can kinda tell I went overboard and had way too much fun with that. But I hope you like it! We're getting into the DRAMA! Next couple of chapters will actually probably focus on LOVE, what with Stevie Rae and Rephaim, and Zoey and Stark, before we get back into the angsty stuff. Please review!**

_**HOLY CRAP! You even had me scared there! Jesus! Warn me next time! But seriously I think you're doing an awesome job with Stevie Rae and Rephaim. Let's just hope I can have a fraction of your talent with Zoey and Stark. Love it Mock!**_

**~Mock, Anabelle**


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